A trio of Colorado lawmakers launched an effort this week to reform the state’s long-troubled system for disciplining judges who violate ethical or professional rules.
In January, leaders of the Commission on Judicial Discipline, the group responsible for disciplining judges, told legislators they tried to hire a law firm to investigate allegations of judicial misconduct connected to that scandal, but that the effortdid not sign off on the necessary funding in what leaders of the commission said was an attempt to influence the scope of the commission’s investigation.
“It became clear to me after looking into it that the Office of Judicial Discipline is structurally, functionally and financially dependent on the Judicial Department,” Lee said, saying the bill was prompted by news coverage of the scandals. “They are not independent, so they can be daunted at every turn.”
“The Colorado Supreme Court and Judicial Department supports a fully funded and independent Commission on Judicial Discipline, eliminating all budgetary connections between the current commission and the department,” the statement said. “It is crucial to the public’s trust in our system of justice that there can be no question that the body charged with investigating allegations of impropriety of judicial officers in Colorado is independent of the judiciary.
Those tenets can’t be changed without a constitutional amendment that’s put to voters, but the bill would require the state Supreme Court to give notice before changing the commission’s rules, and hold a public hearing about the proposed changes.
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